Shuler opts to peddle his influence

Published: Friday, December 7, 2012 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, December 6, 2012 at 7:02 p.m.

There’s nothing like serving three terms in Congress to learn your way around Washington. So it’s no surprise that Duke Energy tapped U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler for a job as a D.C. lobbyist once he ends his term serving Western North Carolina.

On Jan. 4, four days after he steps down as our representative, the Waynesville Democrat will go to work as “senior vice president of federal affairs” for Duke, the nation’s largest electric utility. In a similar move, U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, a Missouri Republican, announced Monday she is leaving Congress to become chief executive officer of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.

These are just two examples of the “revolving door” in which former members of Congress find second careers in the industries they formerly regulated. At least 36 members of Congress are stepping down this year.

“Not much is stopping lawmakers and staffers from going straight into Washington’s most powerful lobbying shops, collecting handsome salaries for their high profiles, skills and contacts,” Politico says in a roundup of the exodus.

Congressional ethics rules bar Shuler from voting on any matters affecting Duke Energy for the remainder of the 112th Congress. By law, he won’t be able to directly lobby his former colleagues for a year.

In his new position, Shuler pledges he will “continue to promote deficit reduction efforts, increasing domestic energy production to put our country on a path to energy security and breaking through the hyper-partisan gridlock that plagues our great nation.”

Duke officials were delighted to have Shuler on board. “Heath is well-known in Washington for working with leaders from both political parties and for bringing people together in his district,” said Keith Trent, Duke’s executive vice president for regulated utilities, in the News & Observer of Raleigh.

The issue here is not so much about Duke or Shuler. It is about the power of money and lobbyists to influence Washington, the symbiotic relationship between lawmakers and the industries they regulate that many Americans view as a plague.

“Members of Congress owe their loyalty to the people they represent, not to big companies offering them future riches,” says Republic Report, a group that tracks the influence of money in Washington. The group recently sent a letter to 36 retiring members of Congress calling on them to disclose to the public if they are negotiating with a private interest for a future job.

Meanwhile, Represent.Us, a coalition of campaign finance activists, has launched a campaign for legislation to limit lobbyist fundraising, Roll Call reports. The proposal, dubbed the American Anti-Corruption Act, would ban members of Congress from raising funds from those who lobby them unless they recuse themselves from actions to benefit those donors.

The revolving door between K Street and Capital Hill is not illegal, nor is it not anything new. But as long as it continues, it will reinforce Americans’ suspicion that our nation has gone from government of the people, by the people, for the people, to government of the lobbyists, by the lobbyists, for the lobbyists.

<p>There’s nothing like serving three terms in Congress to learn your way around Washington. So it’s no surprise that Duke Energy tapped U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler for a job as a D.C. lobbyist once he ends his term serving Western North Carolina.</p><p>On Jan. 4, four days after he steps down as our representative, the Waynesville Democrat will go to work as senior vice president of federal affairs for Duke, the nation’s largest electric utility. In a similar move, U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, a Missouri Republican, announced Monday she is leaving Congress to become chief executive officer of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.</p><p>These are just two examples of the revolving door in which former members of Congress find second careers in the industries they formerly regulated. At least 36 members of Congress are stepping down this year.</p><p>Not much is stopping lawmakers and staffers from going straight into Washington’s most powerful lobbying shops, collecting handsome salaries for their high profiles, skills and contacts, Politico says in a roundup of the exodus.</p><p>Congressional ethics rules bar Shuler from voting on any matters affecting Duke Energy for the remainder of the 112th Congress. By law, he won’t be able to directly lobby his former colleagues for a year.</p><p>In his new position, Shuler pledges he will continue to promote deficit reduction efforts, increasing domestic energy production to put our country on a path to energy security and breaking through the hyper-partisan gridlock that plagues our great nation.</p><p>Duke officials were delighted to have Shuler on board. Heath is well-known in Washington for working with leaders from both political parties and for bringing people together in his district, said Keith Trent, Duke’s executive vice president for regulated utilities, in the News & Observer of Raleigh.</p><p>The issue here is not so much about Duke or Shuler. It is about the power of money and lobbyists to influence Washington, the symbiotic relationship between lawmakers and the industries they regulate that many Americans view as a plague.</p><p>Members of Congress owe their loyalty to the people they represent, not to big companies offering them future riches, says Republic Report, a group that tracks the influence of money in Washington. The group recently sent a letter to 36 retiring members of Congress calling on them to disclose to the public if they are negotiating with a private interest for a future job.</p><p>Meanwhile, Represent.Us, a coalition of campaign finance activists, has launched a campaign for legislation to limit lobbyist fundraising, Roll Call reports. The proposal, dubbed the American Anti-Corruption Act, would ban members of Congress from raising funds from those who lobby them unless they recuse themselves from actions to benefit those donors.</p><p>The revolving door between K Street and Capital Hill is not illegal, nor is it not anything new. But as long as it continues, it will reinforce Americans’ suspicion that our nation has gone from government of the people, by the people, for the people, to government of the lobbyists, by the lobbyists, for the lobbyists.</p>